The Rise of Pyro
by Theos the Hedgehog
Summary: Set after the events of 'Shadow vs Shadow', Sonic and the gang find themselves against the most powerful foe they've ever met. Between the tragic events that follow, can the power of Pyro be stopped, before the entire world is torched? Please R&R, Ch7 up
1. A New Threat

**Yahoo! Howdy everyone. Yes, we're finally back writing Sonic FanFics, for the sole enjoyment of everyone out there.**

**_This one will be exceptionally good, cuz it's about me! HA HA HA!_ **

**Whoa there Pyro. You don't show up til later.**

**_Later? LATER?! YOU SHALL DIE FOR YOUR INSOLENCE!!_ **

**OK, I need to defuse the raging inferno known as Pyro the Hedgehog. Why don't you all enjoy the first chapter of The Rise of Pyro...**

**DISCLAIMER: I own none of the Sonic the Hedgehog characters, except Theos and Pyro. The rest all belong to SEGA!**

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** **Chapter 1: Enter Theos**

The huge metal fist slammed into the ground, sending a shower of concrete, dust and trash into the air. The vibrations rattled the windows of the nearby skyscrapers, causing the people within the offices to dive under desks, wary of the six foot panes of glass coming lose and falling inwards. The fist extracted itself from the ground, leaving a shallow depression in the middle of the road, cracks appearing the tarmac as the metal limb rose up.

The 50-storey Eggbot, to whom the metallic mist belonged, seemed to bend over slightly as if looking at the depression it had created in more detail. Inside the head of the robot, sat at the master controls, sat Dr Eggman, world kingpin-wannabe and number one evil genius. His expression was one of excitement as he tilted the robot forward. When he saw the shallow crater was empty, the grin of glee changed to a scowl of frustration.

"Curse that blasted hedgehog!" he shouted as he righted the robot. Once again, the Doctor was attempting to take over Station Square. And once again, Sonic the Hedgehog and friends were causing his Eggyness to have a major migrane. Peering behind him, Eggman could see his army of Mech-Eggs being harassed and beaten back by Sonic's friends. The red and black robots, despite being armed to the circuitboards, were falling like a stack of cards.

SMASH!

Amy Rose's PikoPiko hammer turned one Mech-Egg's head into a pancake, severing it from the body.

CRUNCH!

Another Mech-Egg had its inner circuits punched clean through its back by Knuckles, leaving a gaping hole in the defunct robot.

BOOM!

As the X-Tornado flew past, Tails dropped bomb after bomb on the hoards of Mech-Eggs, turning Eggman's finest army into heaps of spare parts.

RAT-AT-AT-AT-AT!

Even Eggman's own creations were against him. E-123, otherwise known as Omega, was using his wrist mounted gattling guns to create metallic Swiss cheese. Alongside him was Rouge the Bat, her vicious kicks decapitating the soldier-droids with ease.

Eggman could feel his frustration rising. Curse the lot of them! He turned back to his controls, only to let out a loud sigh of irritation. Heading down the highway, straight for his Super Eggbot, came two familiar hedgehogs. One blue as the daytime sky, one black as night. Sonic and Shadow. Bearing down on the fight scene like hounds on a fox. Eggman knew that his time was limited, and that he'd have no chance against the pair of speedy hedgehogs. Despite this, a sinister grin spread across his face. His was not to fight the hedgehogs. For once, he was providing the distraction. And with 25,000 Mech-Eggs armed to the hilt invading Station Square, he was providing quite a distraction. Eggman's eyes narrowed behind his tinted glasses, as he gave his full concentration to the approaching hedgehogs.

"Time to dance, you little blue pest!" Eggman's thumb slammed down on the trigger.

The Super Eggbot unleashed hell.

Rockets launched from the pods on the robot's back, Machine guns sprang out of the metallic wrists and burst into life, peppering the bitumen of the road. But the two hedgehogs kept coming, dodging every rocket and every bullet as if they weren't real.

"Look guys!" yelled Tails from the X-Tornado. "It's Sonic!"

"And Shadow" added Knuckles, whilst removing his spiked fist from the steel plated face of a Mech-Egg. The two heroes rushed at the Super Eggbot, both curling up into Homing attacks to attack every moving part of the behemoth. Eggman swung both arms, trying to clip one of the spinning blurs. One arm caught Sonic. Instead of the hedgehog being swatted to the ground, his razor sharp spines tore through the metal limb like paper, the gigantic fist falling to the ground with a resounding crash.

Normally, such damage to one of his creations would have enraged the doctor. This time, Eggman remained calm. _I know something you don't know_ , he mentally taunted the blue blur as Sonic landed on his feet. The second metal fist slammed into the ground, just missing the azure hero. _I know what you will have to face after this_ . A missile blew up in mid air, due to a head on collision with a Chaos Spear. _A power far greater than anything I can throw at you._ Eggman's mind momentarily flashed back to six months previously…

_[flashback]_

_Looking back to Earth, Eggman saw a small golden light appear at the centre of his headquarters. The light suddenly rushed outward and upward, creating a bubble of golden light which seemed to chase the escape pod. Just when it looked as it the bubble would catch up, it all seemed to rush back on itself, as if being sucked back into the abyss. The light bubble disappeared, and Eggman instantly knew what would happen next. As he covered his ears, the explosion erupted. A gigantic ball of flame erupted and spread out, engulfing his entire hideout in a matter of seconds. As the fireball lifted, Eggman saw nothing but rubble. Standing in the centre, a perfect circle of open ground surrounding him, stood a golden figure. _

"_I'll have my revenge for this" hissed Eggman as the capsule docked with the Death Egg. "I'll defeat you and that irritating blue hedgehog somehow". The capsule doors slid open, and Dr Eggman was greeted by a sinister voice and two glowing yellow and green eyes shining out from the dark of the space station._

"_Dr Eggmannnn" hissed the voice, a flicker of flame bobbing up and down in time to the words. "Perhapssss we can be of ssssome assistance…"_

_[end flashback]_

Another evil grin spread across Eggman's face. Oh yes, Sonic and friends will have their hands full when his new 'friends' make an appearance. This 'attack was simply to make sure they were all in one place at the same time. _Mission achieved, I think. Time to make my escape…_ .

A reverberating smashing sound, brought Eggman back to the present, as Sonic and Shadow burst through the glass surrounding Eggman's cockpit.

"Ok, Eggman. Game's up!" yelled Sonic, the only evidence of just battling the gigantic robot being a small oil stain on his shoulder. Shadow stepped forward.

"If I were you, I'd return to my little space station and get a new hobby." The menacing grin flashed on Shadow's face. "'Cause 'taking over the world' just isn't working for you"

"Ha ha ha. Somehow, my spiny friends, I think you will soon have more to worry about than what I do in my spare time!". Eggman slammed his hand down on a big red button on the dashboard. A glass capsule closed around him, and before Sonic or Shadow could react, had blasted out of the robot into the sky. With its master controls disengaged, the Super Eggbot began to tumble over.

"We're outtta here, Shad!" exclaimed Sonic, before spindashing out through the smashed window. Shadow followed, using his Chaos-powered hover-shoes to slow his descent. As Shadow's feet touched solid ground, the Super Eggbot finally lost balance, crashing to the ground in a cloud of dust and metal. As if on key, every Mech-Egg that had, until now, survived, stopped moving. The arms went limp, and a number of them fell over.

"Did you get him?" asked Knuckles as Sonic and Shadow rejoined the group. Sonic shook his head.

"No. The egg turned into a chicken and flew off" he said as he looked skywards, searching for any sign of Eggman's escape pod. Eggman's word echoes through the hero's brain. _What did he mean, "more to worry about"? Was this all just a ruse? _ His thoughts were interrupted as two hands grabbed his cheeks and a pair of warm lips pressed themselves against his. Rather than try to fight it, Sonic kissed back, his eyes closed whilst savouring the moment. Only when their lips had parted did Sonic gaze into the emerald eyes of his beloved Amy Rose.

"Oh please" gagged Knuckles, trying to ignore the besotted hedgehogs. "Will you two stop making kissy-faces until you get home?" Sonic just grinned and winked at the echidna.

"Don't tell me you're jealous, pal?" asked Sonic, playing the innocent party. Knuckles rolled his eyes, knocked a deactivated Mech-Egg over, before putting his hands firmly on his hips.

"Yeah, right. Jealous of you? Jealous of what?!" he scoffed. As he turned to another dead Mech-Egg, he stopped and slapped his hand over his face. "For the love of… Will you two give up?" His outburst was aimed at Shadow and Rouge, who were currently engaged in a bout of tonsil tennis. "You two are worse than Blue Boy and Pinkie over there!" Rouge just winked as Shadow let her out of his grasp.

"You KNOW you're jealous of Shadow" she teased. Knuckles, whose face was beginning to turn the same colour as his fur, muttered something obscene and turned away.

Shadow, grinning like a Cheshire Cat, started to walk ahead of the group.

"I think Red is right. We should…UGH!" His sentence was cut off as something slammed into him, sending the ebony hedgehog careering into the Super Eggbot's carcass. He bounced off the metal wreckage, collapsing to the ground in a crumpled heap. The rest of the team span round, all looking for the hidden attacker. Rouge ran over to her fallen beau. As she knelt down, the invisible attacker caught the side of her head, knocking her sideways. The white bat fell, unconscious, to the ground.

"There's something…someone here…" said Knuckles, his Chaos-tuned body quivering like awalking radar. Before he could say anything else, a fist appeared from nowhere, slamming into the echidna's jaw. Knuckles staggered backwards a couple of steps, before collapsing backwards, knocked out.

Having landed the X-Tornado, Tails was just about to leap from the cockpit when he felt something grab him by the scruff of the neck.

"Hey! What the…" The young fox was hurled from the X-Tornado cockpit to the ground, the rough concrete drawing blood from the young fox's grazed chin, before he was thrown against the plane itself. His body left a depression in the lightweight shell, clearly visible as the lifeless fox tumbled to the ground.

"INTRUDER DETECTED. TARGET LOCKED. MISSILE FIRE" bellowed Omega, before two black missiles erupted from his back. The missiles hurtled skywards, only to veer off in opposite directions. Both then turned back towards the ground, heading straight at Omega.

"Omega! Get Down!" yelled Amy. Eggman's former robot didn't have time to react, the two missiles slamming into his body, exploding in a flash of white light. Sonic and Amy both covered their eyes, shielding them from the searing light. When they looked up again, Omega had been obliterated. Parts of his metal body were spread across the highway, like some sort of horrible robotic jigsaw gone wrong.

Amy was about to say something, before she felt a hand clamp around her throat. Time slowed, as she felt her feet leave the air, her momentum set to take her head first into a nearby skyscraper reception. A familiar voice rang out.

"Get your filthy hands off my girl, biatch!" A well-known red and white sneaker shot past her line of vision, seemingly crashing into something rather solid in front of her. The grip on her throat slackened, and Amy found herself on the ground, panting for breath on all fours. Stood in front of her was Sonic, his fists up, his eyes focused on something beyond the Super Eggbot carapace.

With a grunt of pain, and perhaps irritation, a dark form pulled itself on top of the Eggbot. Amy's eyes widened, as she got a good look at the creature. It looked remarkably like Shadow. It was certainly a hedgehog, but its spines were much longer than any hedgehog's she'd seen. Its fur was a dark blue, similar to a dusk sky, while each quill on its head was streaked with silver. Its fearsome scarlet eyes seemed to glow in comparison to its dark body, which seemed to suck all the light around it, giving the hedgehog-creature a demonic look.

"Ok pal" started Sonic, the anger in his voice coursing through every word. "You've got 5 seconds to explain yourself before I paint the town with ya!" His fists clenched tighter. "No-one threatens my girlfriend while I'm here." The dark creature seemed to study Sonic for a second, before a deep rumbling noise erupted from its mouth. It was laughing! Sonic couldn't believe it. This creep was laughing at him!

"My, Sonic." The rumbling laughter died down, replaced by a deep throaty growling voice, so deep that Amy had to strain her ears to hear every word. "You're a lot stronger than the doctor gives you credit for. Hmm-mm. That's good. I like surprises. They make things…interesting" The creature jumped down to the ground, landing just out of reach of Shadow's outstretched hands. "Perhaps I should introduce myself properly" The hedgehog creature bowed in mock courtesy.

"My name is Theos the Hedgehog, and I'm here to kill you all."

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**And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how you make an entrance!**

**_There's no me. Why is there no me? WHY, GODDAM IT, WHY?_ **

**Apologies for Ego the Hedgehog over here. While I go slap him down to earth, look out for Chapter 2 of The Rise of Pyro. Now come here you mortal fool...**

**-Theos & _Pyro_ **


	2. The Battle of Station Square

**Welcome back everyone. Hope you enjoyed the first chapter of The Rise of Pyro.**

**_Hmm, The Rise of Pyro? That has no Pyro in it? *Great*_ **

**(Sarcastic son of a...) Anyway, here's Chapter 2. Enjoy!**

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**Chapter 2: Battle of Station Square**

The wind seemed to scream through Station Square, as Sonic and the newcomer Theos stood staring intently at each other. A casual grin sat on Theos' lips. Sonic's frown was full of concern for his friends, and anger at this intruding hedgehog. Theos took a step forward, as if testing Sonic's reflexes. The azure hero stood his ground, not moving from his defensive position between Theos and Amy. The grin widened.

"Ah, you're not skittish eh?" Theos purred. His voice seemed to echo off the buildings in the deserted street. "That's a good sign. I'd hate to destroy something that didn't put up a fight first." This time, Sonic's face erupted into a world-famous grin. The fact that Sonic was grinning, despite the fact that his life was being threatened, threw Theos. Sonic must have picked up on the minute change in expression on the dark hedgehogs face.

"What's up, Theos? You never met someone with my confidence?" Sonic extended a finger at Theos. "You should know, pal, that Eggman has been trying for years to kill me. And he hasn't come close once. What makes you think that you'll do what old Egg-breath hasn't been able to?" Theos' eyes seemed to burn brighter with the taunts from his lighter counterpart. He bared his teeth, releasing a guttural growl. His feet left the ground as the dark hedgehog began to levitate. Black sparks of energy began to bounce along his spines. Theos looked Sonic straight in the eye.

"Because I have the power of Chaos!" Sonic half closed his eyes and let his head lol to one side, imitating a very tired person.

"Wow…I've never heard that one before…" he said, acting as bored as he possibly could without grinning. Theos, on the other hand, failed to see the funny side.

"Die, you blue pest!" A blast of white energy shot out of Theos' hand, only to be kicked away by the super-quick reflexes of everyone's favourite hero. The 'battle-grin' was now firmly in place.

"It's go time!" With that, Sonic's feet kicked into life, hurtling the azure hero at Theos faster than the newcomer could have predicted. Sonic's right fist connected firmly with Theos' chin, sending the dark hedgehog flying into the wreckage of Eggman's machine. Sonic flipped back, landing on two feet, holding his hand in the air. A ball of blue-white energy formed, swirling around the cerulean hero's hand.

"Sonic Wind" The energy ball turned into a blade of light as Sonic launched his attack, slicing through the wreckage like a hot knife through butter. The steel robot seemed to fall apart as rubber and metal were silently torn apart. Sonic smirked, until a familiar form reared its head.

"Impossible…" The form rushed at Sonic, taking the world's fastest hedgehog by surprise. A fist found itself rammed in Sonic's gut so hard that Sonic thought it had gone through him. A second fist slammed into Sonic's jaw, followed by another and another. Between each slug, Sonic heard Theos' deep voice taunting him.

"What…a…useless…piece…of…sh-." The last word was cut off by a flash of yellow light, as Theos was catapulted sideways, slamming into building.

Sonic, his cheek swollen and bleeding, looked to his left, to see the Ultimate Lifeform was back on his feet, the last crackles of a Chaos Spear dying on his raised fist. Shadow ran over and helped Sonic back to his feet.

"You ok to continue?" he asked, even though he knew only unconsciousness or death would stop Sonic. As expected Sonic gave a thumbs up, before the pair turned to where their attacker had landed.

As if on cue, Theos slowly rose from the rubble, dust coating his midnight and silver quills. Rather than looking angry, he looked surprisingly calm. To add to the amazement of the Speed Demon and Ultimate Lifeform, the dark hedgehog started clapping.

"Bravo. Bravo." He said, his oily voice seeming to echo around the Square. "I was wondering when you two would take me on together. I'll admit; holding back on Blue-Boy was no fun." Sonic's mouth dropped.

"Holding back?" Theos simply sneered and nodded.

"Of course. You didn't actually think I'd be knocked into a building that easily did you?" he taunted. The quills on his head started to stand up straight, as Chaos energy poured into his muscles. "Now I'll show you my true power!" In a blink, the dark hedgehog had vanished.

Before either of the heroes could move, both felt a gut wrenching pain, as Theos slammed his fists into their stomachs. Both Sonic and Shadow were sent flying backwards, Sonic landing by Amy and Shadow ending up nearly crashing into the awakening Rouge.

"Shadow?" questioned the huntress, as Shadow coughed up specks of crimson. It matched the fury now burning in his eyes.

"Stay down" he growled, before launching himself back at his enemy, Chaos flames blaring out of his hover-shoes. Sonic, pulling himself up, found himself looking into the teary eyes of his beloved.

"Don't move, Amy" he said softly. "I don't want you getting hurt." He gave her a quick peck on the cheek, before dashing off in a blur of blue.

Theos, seeing two blurs of movement heading towards him, just smiled. However, his cockiness was his undoing. His fist shot up to block the high kick from Shadow. That took his attention away from the second blur, resulting in a full power, Sonic-brand spin dash straight into the dark hedgehog's chest. The wind was driven from him, lowering his defences, allowing Shadow to swiftly plant his right foot in the side of Theos' head. The kick sent Theos hurtling down the street, smashing through three cars in the process.

"Time to take out the trash" snarled Shadow, as yellow sparks of Chaos energy began to form in his palm. When a ball of energy had formed, the Ultimate Lifeform raised his palm at the downed Theos. "CHAOS SPEAR!"

Shrieking like a banshee, the energy ball slammed into Theos, detonating in a ball of golden light. Theos was thrown in the air, semi-conscious.

"SONIC WIND!" The conscious side of him heard the shout, saw the attack, but was unable to move out of the way, as a blast of razor sharp wind hit him, blasting him into the face of a skyscraper, shattering the windows and raining the shards onto the pavement below. Theos soon followed, crashing to the ground in a cloud of dust.

Sonic and Shadow, bruised and battered from the earlier assault, ran over to where Theos had crash landed, ready to take on the next wave of attacks. Yellow and blue Chaos energy sparked across the two hedgehogs, every sense heightened. Both now stood in silence as the laughter of a maniac drifted out of the rubble.

In a sudden blast of flames, the rubble shot out in all directions, slamming into buildings and cars, smashing trees and cracking the pavement. Having narrowly missed the flying debris, Shadow and Sonic stared at Theos.

His midnight blue fur was now a murky maroon, while the once silver streaks down his spines were bright orange. His eyes were those of a madman, having turned to yellow irises over green orbs, they darted back and forth, searching. When they fixed on Shadow and Sonic, the irises contracted into small yellow dots.

"You…" The voice dripped with evil, the sound not much more than a rumble from the throat of the new Theos.

"Alright, Theos. What the hell is this?" demanded Sonic, his eyes never leaving the demon-hedgehog before him. Theos grinned, at which point he seemed to set himself alight. Flames of bright orange licked around his body, scorching the ground upon which the hedgehog stood.

"Theos is no longer available" growled the hedgehog. "I am Pyro, the Demon of Fire. The Spirit of the Volcano. And your executioner!"

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**_Oh hell yeah! That's what I'm talking about. You get your ass handed to you, and it's up to me to sort out Blackie and Blue. Hell YEAH! I am gonna kick some hedgehog ass!_ **

**I'll kick your hedgehog ass if you don't sit down and shut up. You're giving me a migrane. And a migrane for me means a Chaos Torrent for you.**

**_...ok...I'll shut up._ **

**[sighs] catch you next time, everyone! Theos & _Pyro_ **


	3. Assault and Retreat

**And here we are again with the third instalment of…**

_**The Rise of Pyro! HAHAHA! Yes, bow before me, puny mortals. I am the Lord of Volcanoes, Master of Lava. I bring the burn, baby! Woo! Can you feel the heat?**_

**[SWEATDROPS] …okay…on with the show…**

Chapter 3: Assault and Retreat

Without another word, Pyro rushed forward, tackling Sonic to the ground, the concussion wave knocking Shadow off his feet. In a raging fury, Pyro unleashed a barrage of punches to the blue hero, moving so fast that his arms were a blur even Sonic couldn't block. Pyro gripped Sonic by the shoulder and tossed him across the street, the cerulean hedgehog crashing through the front window of a hardware store. Sonic grunted with pain as his back made contact with the hard ground inside the shop, spatters of blood mixed with shards of glass on the ground around him.

Coughing up a glob of crimson, Sonic struggled back to his feet, determined not to let this new threat take him down. As he stood, he saw a blood-chilling figure outside, palms raised to the store. A fireball formed in Pyro's hands, an evil grin gleaming by the light of the flames. Sonic looked around, saw the canisters of oil in the store and dived out of the building as fast as his super-charged legs would take him.

"Burn in hell, Blue Boy!" shouted Pyro gleefully, as he thrust the fireball forwards. "Flaming Torrent!" A blast of fire shot out of the fiery hedgehog's hands, engulfing the store as Sonic emerged. The oil drums within detonated like a bomb, the building being ripped apart in the blast. Sonic was blown off his feet, flying through the air until he landed and rolled back across the street. He tried to get up, but the burning pain shooting up and down his spine caused him to scream in agony. Pyro simply turned from the raging inferno, his own aura of fire protecting him from any flaming debris that was thrown his way.

As Pyro walked towards the fallen blue hero, a white-gloved fist slammed into the side of his face, completely taking him by surprise. The fist disappeared in a flash of green light, only to reappear on the other side of Pyro, slamming into the fiery hedgehog's face. Pyro was knocked back as Shadow unleashed his own flurry of punches, each one connecting with the blazing hedgehog. Shadow's anger grew, however, when he saw that Pyro was smiling throughout the attack, the evil grin never faltering under the flood of fists to his face.

"Come on Shadow. Is that all you've got?" taunted Pyro, angering the Ultimate Lifeform even more. An aura of yellow Chaos energy burst into life, as Shadow threw heavier and heavier punches. One well connected uppercut sent Pyro wheeling backwards, giving Shadow his opening. Palm out, he charged his trademark attack.

"Chaos…Spear!" The energy bolt screamed through the air, blasting into Pyro and exploding in a shower of yellow light. When the smoke cleared, Shadow's pupils shrunk in fear, as Pyro walked, unscathed, towards him. This time, however, the cocky grin had been replaced with a scowl.

"Ow" said Pyro, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Without warning, he caught Shadow with an almighty uppercut that shot the black hedgehog into the air. Pyro flew up after him, following the punch with an elbow to the gut, knocking the wind out of Shadow and sending the Ultimate Lifeform hurtling back towards the unforgiving concrete of Station Square. Pyro's flaming aura kicked into overdrive, as he flew at the falling black hedgehog. Catching Shadow in midair, Pyro continued dive-bombing towards the streets below. With a deafening boom, both hedgehogs ploughed into the asphalt, Pyro's speed thrusting Shadow 10 feet down into the bedrock.

"Aww, did the widdle hedgehog take a tumble?" taunted Pyro, none the worse for dive-bombing into the road. Shadow, bloodied by the crash-landing, managed to open one eye. With an air of one who doesn't give up, he gave Pyro the finger, much to the annoyance of Pyro. "Grr, you little pest!" He grabbed Shadow by his white chest fur, earning another grimace of pain from the black hedgehog. "Time I taught you some manners." Pyro took off again, carrying Shadow up with him. They came to the top of an apartment block, some fifteen stories from the ground. Shadow's one open eye took in the view, and could almost visualise what was going to happen.

"Now, are you going to be a good little hedgehog and pledge obedience to my good self?" asked Pyro, his fire aura beginning to heat up again. "Or am I going to have to introduce you to Madame Pavement?" Shadow opened his mouth to speak, but barely a whisper came out. Pyro put his head next to Shadow's straining to hear the Ultimate Lifeform's response.

"…Fuck you, asshole" whispered Shadow, a serene smile of victory on his face. Pyro was livid. His flaming aura burst into life, scorching the fur on Shadow's chest.

"You impudent little bastard!" scream Pyro, as he grabbed Shadow by the throat. "Now you die!" With a grunt, Pyro threw Shadow towards the ground like a pitcher would throw a baseball. Shadow flew for what seemed like an eternity, until he crashed into the pavement below, sending a shower of dirt, concrete and asphalt into the air. A shallow crater, 20 feet across spread out beneath the still hedgehog.

The bone-jarring crash made Sonic open his eyes. He saw the fallen Ultimate Lifeform, bruised, bloodied, and seemingly lifeless from the power demonstrated by Pyro. Something screamed in Sonic's head to get up, stand and fight this new menace like he always did against Eggman. Sonic looked up, and his face paled.

Pyro had descended from the apartment block and now stood over the two fallen hedgehogs, the two heroes of Mobius. The fiery hedgehog couldn't help but laugh. The sadistic laughter travelled through the abandoned streets, echoing off the shells of buildings destroyed or damaged by the fight. When Pyro had stopped chuckling, he looked over at Shadow. Unbelievably, the chest of the Ultimate Lifeform still rose and dropped, he was still breathing. _He's still breathing after that fall? Hell and damnation_, thought Pyro. Looking away from Shadow, the crazed yellow and green eyes now focused upon Sonic, who lay incapacitated at Pyro's feet.

"Well now" said the flaming demon, "which one of you should I finish off first? The Blue Blur or the Ultimate Lifeform? Hmm," Pyro tapped his chin, theatrically pondering on his decision. Sonic tried to haul himself up to his feet, but could only sit up before collapsing back to the ground again. The futile attempt to stand earned a snigger from Pyro. "Pathetic…" he mumbled. He raised his hand to Sonic, the palm starting to glow orange. As Sonic looked on, helpless, a fireball formed in Pyro's palm, the heat making Sonic sweat. The flames started to travel up Pyro's arm, until his entire arm was ablaze.

"Sonic" said Pyro, an evil grin fixed on the fiery hedgehog's face, "prepare to meet the Pyro Twister!" As the heat intensity grew, Sonic saw a red flash out of the corner of his eye.

"Thunder Arrow!" The arrow of red Chaos Energy smacked into Pyro, causing him to lose his concentration and extinguishing the small inferno enveloping his arm. The fiery one turned round, to meet a thunderous haymaker from a severely pissed off echidna. Pyro took the swing full in the face and was catapulted cack some thirty feet, crashing through a shop window. Knuckles, followed by Tails, Amy and Rouge, ran over to the fallen hedgehogs. The guardian knelt down and hauled Shadow over his shoulder, before helping Sonic to his feet.

"Never thought I'd be happy to see your ugly mug" teased Sonic, before doubling over in agony. Amy helped to steady her boyfriend, as Knuckles put his spare hand on his hip.

"Typical Sonic" he stated, a small grin on his lips. "Saved by mere seconds from instant death, and still has the cheek to take a pop!" The grin disappeared, as Knuckles noticed Pyro beginning to get up from the debris in the shop. He grabbed Sonic by the wrist, earning a confused look from the cerulean hero. "Come on, we're outta here." Sonic dug his heel in, preventing the crimson guardian from dragging him off.

"What the hell you on about, Red?" asked the blue hedgehog, his expression a mixture of confusion and anger. "We can't just abandon Station Square to that…that…monster!" Knuckles looked Sonic in the eyes, purple orbs meeting their emerald counterparts.

"We're not abandoning anyone or anything" growled the guardian. "But you and Shadow are our best hope against this guy, and neither of you is in any fit state to stand, let alone fight." Sonic, leaning on Amy for support, had to agree with Knuckles at least.

"So what do we do?" asked the cerulean hero. Knuckles closed his eyes for a moment, before refocusing on the Blue Blur.

"We retreat to Angel Island, get you two back to fighting condition, then send you back in armed with the Chaos Emeralds. Two Super hedgehogs should be more than enough for that walking matchstick." Sonic thought about the proposal for a moment.

"Sonic…?" queried Amy. Sonic's famous grin spread across his face.

"Let's do it!"

_**Argh! The cowards! I'll kill them all!**_

**Now Pyro I don't think there's any need to go off on a murderous rampage is there?**

_**What!? What do you think the story is about then, you silver striped moron? Fluffy bunnies playing hopscotch? (Idiot…)**_

**What did you say? [Starts charging a Black Lightning]**

_**[Cowers] Nothing…**_

**That's what I thought you said…anyway everyone, hope you enjoyed this chapter. It's a nice long one as well, so lots to review about. *nudgenudgewinkwink*. See y'all next time. Theos & **_**Pyro**_


	4. Dreams

**_Go on, say what you need to say..._**

**Ahem. It has come to my attention that I have severely screwed up. Instead of the 4th chapter of Rise of Pyro, I appear to posted a Pokemon sonfic. Therefore, I'm formally apologising to all my readers, and correcting this major cock-up...**

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Chapter 4: Dreams

With a flash of green light, the heroes of Mobius landed on the surface of Angel Island. As soon as his feet touched the green grass, Sonic's legs gave way and the azure hedgehog collapsed to the ground. Shadow and Knuckles each grabbed an arm and hauled the speed freak back to his feet.

"Sonic..." whispered Amy, the fear for her boyfriend clear to see in her emerald eyes. Knuckles pointed towards the Master Emerald shrine with his free hand.

"Come on, we need to get Sonic near the emerald so he can rest." With that, Shadow and Knuckles started forward, bearing the weight of the semi-conscious Sonic between them. Following the three heroes were Amy, Rouge and Tails. Everyone knew how much danger they were in. With Sonic out of commission, they were severely depleted should Pyro choose to attack the island.

In due course, they came to the opening in front of the shrine. The ancient stones, dulled by the eons, seemed to silence the world, as if lack of noise would help Sonic to recover. The Master Emerald, glowing softly and bathing the opening in soft green light, seemed to brighten up as Knuckles approached. The guardian placed his hand on the gem, which flashed twice. Knuckles turned to the rest of the group.

"If we set a bed for Sonic up in front of the emerald, he should recover a lot quicker." The others nodded, and the two girls went off in search of blankets. Knuckles and Shadow set Sonic down. The azure hero slowly opened one eye, taking in his new surroundings.

"How...how did we get here?" asked Sonic. Shadow grinned as he replied.

"We had to haul your sorry ass all the way from Station Square. If I were you, I'd lay off the chilli dogs." The grin widened. "Wouldn't want Amy going steady with a blimp!" Sonic was up on his feet faster than Shadow could react, the azure hero's hands clutched tightly on Shadow's white chest fur.

"Wanna say that again, emo-boy?" growled Sonic. Before Shadow could answer, Sonic swayed and collapsed back to the ground. The grin on the ultimate lifeform's face disappeared as he knelt down to the fallen blue hedgehog.

"He's out cold" said Shadow, one hand pressed against Sonic's forehead, "and he's burning up. We need to get him comfortable as soon as possible." Knuckles nodded, just as the girls arrived back with blankets and a pillow. Before long, Sonic was tucked up on a makeshift bed in front of the shrine, basking in the soft green glow of the Master Emerald. Knuckles looked up at the sky and the setting sun.

"I suggest the rest of us get some sleep. Aurora knows what Pyro's up to while were here. We need to be ready for anything." Shadow and Rouge nodded, as they headed into Knuckles shack. Knuckles turned to Amy and Tails. "You two stay with Sonic. I'm gonna go scout the island." With that, the crimson echidna disappeared into the forest. Tails and Amy sat down next to Sonic, who snored softly in his semi-conscious sleep.

_Sonic glared at the fiery hedgehog before him, trying his damndest to block out the destruction around them. Station Square had been virtually obliterated by their fight. Shells of buildings cast shadows over burnt out cars. Craters and pot holes were linked by a never ending web of cracks, running through concrete and tarmac alike. The acrid smoke of burning gasoline floated above their heads, creating dark shadows that drifted across the Square. _

_Sonic, current glowing bright yellow in Super mode, was breathing heavily. A deep cut on his cheek oozed blood down to his chin, red droplets falling to the ground below. Bruises ran up one arm and across his shoulders, grazes created a patchwork effect on his left leg. Pyro, on the other hand was unscathed, unhurt, completely without a scratch. This in itself was troubling the Super hedgehog, because he'd given his all. He'd thrown every move and attack he knew at Pyro. He'd connected with the fiery fiend on numerous occasions. He'd unleashed an assault that Shadow would have caved in under. Yet his flame-controlling nemesis still stood tall. Dominating. Undefeatable._

_Without a word, Pyro raised his palms to Sonic, who watched the ball of fire appear and begin to swirl between the fingers. It swirled and grew, becoming a fireball the size of a football. Then Pyro fired. The fireball flew towards Sonic, leaving a spiralling fiery trail behind it as it corkscrewed through the air. Within two seconds it hit home, a direct hit..._

Sonic sat bolt upright, sweat dripping off his forehead. With a groan, Sonic's beaten body reacted badly to the sudden movement, pain lancing through the azure hedgehogs body like red hot pokers. Steeling himself against the pain, Sonic managed to breathe out slowly, avoiding a second protest from his ribs. He looked around him. Seeing Tails and Amy curled up nearby made him smile. At least his friends were here. The smile disappeared as he remembered his dream. _He's just too powerful; I can't beat him._ A sudden thought struck Sonic, something Tails had once said when Sonic had refused to take him on a mission against Eggman's latest invention: "Sonic, there's no 'I' in team. So stop being an ass and let me help!"

Another smile hit Sonic's mouth, this one quickly turning into a wide grin. _Yeah, no I in team. That's what we need to do: take on Pyro as a team._ Sonic yawned as he lay back down on his blanket. _Pyro won't stand a chance..._

_He ran faster and faster, faster than he'd ever run before. The Chaos energy flaring out of his shoos was scorching the ground as he ran. He didn't care. He was more concerned about the wall of flames that was chasing him. He shot past houses, skyscrapers, parks, churches, warehouses. The streets of Station Square gradually merged into a single blur, as he pushed himself to go faster. He had to keep ahead of the fire. Ahead of the monster within the flames._

_He couldn't explain it at the time, nor would he be able to once he awoke, but Shadow saw time slow down, he saw the flames catch up with himself, as if he was watching a movie of himself. He couldn't hear the soul shattering scream that was ushered forth from the throat of the Shadow before him. All he could see was a wall of flames crash down over him, like a fiery tidal wave crashing on an unwary surfer. The flames then disappeared, leaving no signs of their ever being there. Except for the charred figure lying on the ground._

_Shadow stepped cautiously forward, half expecting to see himself as a charred bloody mess, having being incinerated and crushed to death by the monstrous flaming tsunami. He tentatively turned the body over, and instantly jumped back in horror. It wasn't his face that was charred, bloodied, dead. It was Sonic..._

Shadow opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling. His breathing was quick, his pulse was quicker, and beads of sweat had started to form on his temples. Sonic? It made no sense. Why was he dreaming of Sonic's death? Was it a sign, a message, a premonition? Shadow shivered at the thought. Had he just witnessed the demise of the blue speed demon? Getting out of bed so as not to disturb Rouge, Shadow donned his hover skates and headed outside.

The midnight sky was filled with twinkling stars, while the silvery orb of the moon lit up the surface of Angel Island. Shadow put his hands on his hips and looked up at the peaceful sky, contemplating his dream. It still made no sense. Why had he been dreaming of Sonic dying? He shook his head, a small chuckle escaping his lips. Obviously the events of the previous day were catching up with him.

A rustle in the undergrowth put all of Shadow's internal systems on high alert. He swung round towards the nose, knees bent, fists balled and raised. He peered into the inky darkness.

"Who's there?" he demanded. At first, the night was silent. Shadow began to feel foolish for being startled by a breeze. Then the rustling kicked up again. Shadow felt no breeze, and the balled fists were raised once more. "Show yourself!" shouted Shadow, his irritation and nerves beginning to fray. The rustling grew louder, and out of the undergrowth came…

"Knuckles?" The crimson guardian shot past Shadow without stopping, yelling at the top of his voice. The wind that had suddenly kicked up stopped the words from floating back to Shadow, He frowned. Knuckles wasn't one to scare easily. Shadow suddenly felt something warm on his back. Turning slowly around, his crimson eyes widened in fear. His knees almost gave way. For calmly walking out of the undergrowth, lighting up the night sky with an orange hue, came…

"Hello Shadow."

…Pyro.

* * *

**There we go, all sorted.**

**_Idiot hedgehog._**

**_-_Theos & _Pyro_**


	5. Powers of an Emerald

**(Best Rock voice) Finally, Theos has come back...to !**

**_Whatever... You'll have to excuse Theos, he's been reading the wrestling stories on here, and now thinks he is a WWE superstar...although I don't think he can decide who..._**

**[points at Pyro] Know your role...and shut your damn mouth! Pyro, you're on the way to a trip down Know Your Role Boulevard, hanging a right into Jabroni Drive, where I'll check your ass into the Smackdown Hotel!! [bitch slap from Pyro]**

**_Idiot...Here's chapter 5 folks. Enjoy while I try to sort the Most Irritating Hedgehog in Fan Fiction Today..._**

* * *

Chapter 5: Powers of an Emerald

It was still dark. _Godammit_. White lidded eyes closed again, hoping to drift off to the land of nod. Nothing. _Bollocks to this!_ Rouge sat up, unable to sleep. She was shattered from the previous day's events, yet couldn't for the life of her fall of asleep. Turning to her left, she went to wake her hedgehog boyfriend up, possibly to suggest a walk around the island. _Or possibly for something else that should tire me out just as well_. She chuckled to herself at the thought, a chuckle that caught in her throat when she found Shadow's side of the bed empty. She looked around the darkened room. Nothing moved; nothing to suggest Shadow was even there.

Clambering out of the bed, Rouge donned a dressing gown and stepped out into the cold night air. A light breeze whistled through the Mater Emerald's clearing, the air seemingly swirling around the giant green gem. The emerald itself sparkled in the moonlight, giving it an unearthly appearance. _A gift from the gods_, thought Rouge, as she turned her head towards the forest. Her keen bat hearing picked up several noises. The light snore of Tails. The faint muttering of Amy. That annoying whistling sound that Sonic made through his nose. Rouge couldn't help but giggle. Just how did Amy put up with that next to her at night? Shaking her head, Rouge's ears pricked up. A new noise was coming from the forests of the island. It sounded familiar; a voice shouting something. A voice shouting...

"Guys! Get up! He's here! The bastard's here!" Knuckles came sprinting into the clearing, his yelling waking everyone up. Sonic was the first to respond to the echidna's mad shouts.

"What are you on about, Red?" asked the blue blur, still slightly sleepy and not altogether awake. Knuckles, a fierce scowl on his face, pointed back the way he'd come.

"He's here! Pyro...He's on the island. He's on his way here!" That got Sonic's attention, and woke everyone else up as well.

"WHAT?" Sonic was up and out of his makeshift bed, removing the last few bandages covering his wounds from his previous encounter with Pyro. "That does it. Flame boy needs a chill out period...and I'm the one that's gonna ice his ass!" Amy suddenly grabbed her beau's arm, causing him to swing round to face her.

"Sonic, you can't be serious. You've only just recovered. He'll kill you for sure!" pleaded the pink hedgehog. Sonic took her in his arms, holding her tightly.

"Don't you worry your cute little nose, Aimes." The cocky grin of the Mobian hero flashed in the moonlight. "I'm feeling 110%. Pyro the campfire won't know what hit him." Sonic turned to Tails. "How quickly can you get back to the X-Tornado?" Tails looked up, contemplating the distance between Station Square and Angel Island.

"I'm guessing bout an hour there and back" replied the fox, earning a nod from Sonic.

"Get to it, buddy. I've got a feeling we'll need as much firepower as possible before this is over" Tails nodded, and then took off, his namesake appendages twirling as fast as he could will them. Sonic turned to the Master Emerald shrine. Reaching up to one of the seven pillars around it, he plucked the blue Chaos Emerald from its perch. A surge of energy flowed into him, travelling through his body until coming to a rest in his feet. "Oh yeah" The grin on Sonic's face told everyone that the blue hedgehog's feet were now capable of sound shattering speed. The speed demon took off, a loud sonic boom resounding across the clearing seconds after Sonic moved. Knuckles turned to Rouge.

"You and Amy had better get outta here" said the guardian gruffly. "This is gonna get messy." Rouge put her hands on her hips, and scowled at the crimson echidna. He instantly flinched, knowing full well what Rouge was capable of if provoked.

"Knuckles the Echidna! If you think for one second that me or Amy are gonna stand back and watch our boyfriends get trampled into Chao fodder, you're more of a knucklehead than I give you credit for!" With that, Rouge and Amy took off in the direction Sonic had taken, leaving a shocked and bemused Knuckles in their wake. Shaking his head, the crimson guardian brought up the rear.

"Goddam women…" he muttered as he ran into the jungle.

BOOM!

A fireball exploded, turning a couple of trees into charcoal in the process. The smoke cleared, and Pyro looked pissed. He'd had that blasted black hedgehog dead to rights, one Pyro Twister, and that should have been it: goodnight Vienna. Instead, the coward had used his disappearing trick to vanish just as the spiralling flames left Pyro's hands, wasting perfectly good energy on some pathetic plant life.

Whirling round, the furious fire demon spied his prey. Shadow, for his part, looked far from concerned at the marauding walking fireball stalking towards him. In fact, he smirked as Pyro approached. _Surely he's not that stupid_, thought Pyro, his flaming aura turning nearby leaves various shades of brown and black. _Or is he just trying to piss me off?_ Pyro lunged, a fiery fist aimed directly at Shadow's chest. Mere millimetres away, he heard those damned words leaving the lips of the obsidian hedgehog.

"Chaos Control!" In a green flash, the hedgehog vanished, and the flaming punch intended for Shadow careered into a rock, scorching it black before shattering it into gravel. Pyro withdrew his fist, his temper rising. A deep roar erupted from his throat, the fire demon furious at being teased by the onyx-coloured hedgehog.

"YOU COWARD!" roared Pyro, flames building in intensity around him. "COME OUT AND FIGHT ME LIKE A MOBIAN!" A second later, and Pyro felt a powerful fist lodged in his gut, appearing from nowhere.

"As you wish" snarled Shadow, as Pyro doubled over from the attack. Shadow followed with a swift knee thrust upwards, bringing his kneecap jarringly into contact with Pyro's face. Bones cracked, and Pyro found himself hurtling up and backwards. Before he could react, the forest ground rushed up to meet him. He landed hard on his back, the impact on the forest floor shaking his entire skeleton. Scrambling to his feet, Pyro gingerly touched his nose. A fresh red liquid decorated his gloved fingers, pain throbbing across his face. _Broken_ he thought_ I'll make sure he suffers for that_. The fire demon looked up at his opponent, and froze. Shadow had an air of calm, a total 'I really can't be arsed with you right now" attitude about him. And it sent shockwaves through Pyro, who was used to being feared by all.

"There's something different about you" stated Shadow, starting to walk towards his fiery adversary, a slight smirk visible in the moonlight through the trees. "Something's changed since we met in Station Square". Pyro remained motionless and silent, his crazed yellow-green eyes never leaving the ruby-coloured orbs of Shadow. Still, the obsidian hedgehog continued forward, the smirk growing into a grin. "You're not the same Pyro" Shadow stood nose to nose, Pyro found himself unable to move, hanging on Shadow's monologue. His eyes travelled from the ruby eyes to the cocky, arrogant grin that now adorned the ebony hedgehog's face.

"You're weaker."

Pyro's eyes widened, just before Shadow's right fist hammered into his face, causing Pyro to step back a pace, stars beginning to appear before his eyes. Then a left jab knocked the breath out of him. Finally, a right haymaker knocked the fiery demon off his feet. Shadow jumped up into the air, his hover shoes kicking into life. Yellow Chaos energy began to form a ball in his right hand. Pyro, his body wracked by the unusual sense of pain, dragged himself back to his feet and looked up, just in time to see…

"Chaos Spear!"

…a bright light enveloped him, its force throwing him through the air at high velocity. He smashed through trees and leaves, before landing in a heap, directly in front of the Master Emerald's shrine.

Shadow landed back on terra firma, just as Sonic appeared from the foliage. The blue hedgehog jerked a thumb over his shoulder, indicating the way he had just come from.

"Was that Pyro I saw hurtling overhead?" Shadow nodded.

"Yeah" Sonic glanced back, his eyes as wide as saucers

"…Is there anything left of him?" Shadow's ruby orbs focused on Sonic's emerald counterparts.

"Knowing what we do about that walking firework, I imagine he's still got a couple of tricks hidden away." Sonic's face lit up.

"What we waiting for? Let's toast this goon." With that, the two hedgehogs headed back into the forest, aiming for the Master Emerald shrine.

Having collected the rest of the team on the way back, Sonic and Shadow emerged from the forest into the clearing around the shrine. The giant gem still sparkled on its pedestal, six of the seven Chaos Emeralds sat on their respective pedestals around the central shrine. However, the most noticeable figure was down on all fours, head down, seemingly struggling to stand.

"Holy Aurora, Shadow. What did you do to him?" inquired Amy, who had linked hands with Sonic at the first sight of Pyro. Shadow actually looked concerned as he answered.

"I certainly didn't hit him that bad. And after the pummelling he gave back in the Square, he should still be at virtually full strength. I don't get why he's suddenly such a weakling." The last word of that sentence drew a growl from Pyro, but nothing more. Suddenly, Knuckles pointed past Pyro, to the Master Emerald. Its brilliant green glow seemed to pulsate. Not only that, but the pulses were getting brighter.

At the same time, a strange purple aura seemed to leave Pyro's form, before being absorbed by the Master Emerald, each burst or aura timed with a green pulse. Sonic looked stunned.

"It's almost as if it's…" started Sonic.

"…feeding" finished Knuckles. All eyes moved to the weakened Pyro, still on his hands and knees, almost praying to the green behemoth, weakened moans escaping his lips. Knuckles turned to the rest of the team.

"The Master Emerald is feeding of Pyro" he said, surprise evident in his voice. "It's slowly killing him."

* * *

**_Killing me? Killing me? You're killing me off? After all I've done for you..._**

**[holding frozen peas to head] Ow...no I'm not killing you off (*not yet anyway*). Don't worry, it's all part of the story. And you know what they say: One dramatic twist deserves another!!**

**_If I had any clue whatsoever as to what you're on about..._**

**Look forward to Chapter 6 guys and gals, there WILL be more twists than Spaghetti Junction. There WILL be more fists thrown than Muhammad Ali, Prince Naseem and Amir Khan put together. And there WILL be a cliffhanger like...like...**

**_...like?_**

**(Rock voice) IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT THE CLIFFHANGER IS LIKE! [Pyro sighs]**

**_See you all next time - Pyro & _Theos **


	6. Army of the Underworld

**Ooh...my head...**

**_Apologies folks. Theos is suffering from a Wrestling-FanFic induced hangover..._**

**Damn those stories and their excellent plotlines...**

**_Anyway, the next chapter of the Rise of Pyro is here. Hopefully this should sober him up..._**

* * *

Chapter 6: Army of the Underworld

As the gang looked on, the strange purple aura continued to feed into the Master Emerald. Pyro, down on all fours, felt like he was about to pass out. _That fucking emerald…I should have listened to Theos…Damn him…Damn his…_

A flash of purple light erupted from the Master Emerald, engulfing Pyro, and blinding Sonic and the others. When the light subsided, the gang were shocked to see not Pyro, but…

"Theos?" questioned Amy, subconsciously gripping Sonic's hand tighter at the sight of the midnight hedgehog. Sonic looked just as stunned. Shadow stepped forward, his Chaos energy dancing around his crimson-striped quills.

"OK, moron. Start talking or you're getting a Chaos Spear through your gut." Theos, still on all fours before the glowing Master Emerald, slowly struggled to his feet, before turning to face his opponents. He resisted the urge to collapse back to the ground, never to wake up again. He felt as if lead weights had been attached to all four limbs, making it nigh-on impossible to move.

"You want…an explanation?" he rasped, so quietly that only Rouge could clearly hear him. "That," pointing to the Master Emerald, "is your…fucking explanation." He coughed, before taking three deep rasping breaths. "I'm…It's…It's my weakness…my Achilles' heel…my kryptonite" he murmured, the effort of talking taking its toll on his already depleted body. A wicked smile spread across Shadow's face.

"So that's why you're such a weakling now" he gloated. For a second, Theos' fur reverted back to Pyro's maroon, the red eyes turned yellow and green, and the fire demon stared daggers at the onyx hedgehog. Then the transformation was gone, and Theos had collapsed to his knees.

"What the hell was that?" yelled Rouge, the shock of such a rapid change evident on her face. A deep snigger was the response, Theos' kneeling form shaking with each chuckle. Shadow, Sonic and Knuckles all stepped forward, anticipating some sort of trap. Theos' head lifted, revealing a crazed look, a madman's grin and wide dilated eyes. Even more disturbing, everyone noticed was that Theos now had the crazed eyes of Pyro. When the navy-furred hedgehog spoke, it was the demon's voice that echoed across the shrine.

"I must apologise for my associate here" the deep demonic voice resonated off every wall of the ruins, amplifying the voice ten-fold. "He often feels light headed so close to this majestic gem". Theos-Pyro stood up, turned to the Master Emerald and laughed. "To be held back by a mere gem…most unbefitting of a god…" Sonic picked up on the word straight away.

"A god?" Images of Chaos, God of Destruction flooded his mind. The navy hedgehog turned back to the five figures facing him. The wicked grin seemed to grow bigger.

"Yes, Sonic. Theos and I are both gods. Two deities destined to rule the realms of the living and the dead. However…" He paused, whether through thought or for dramatic effect, Sonic couldn't be sure. "There was an…occurrence…that left the two of us merged in this way." The grin disappeared, replaced by a scowl. "Condemned to subordination to a pathetic gem-fearing fool of a deity for eternity!" The shout of anger was closely followed by the familiar fiery aura erupting around the hedgehog. The evil grin wormed its way back onto the crazed face. "But that won't last much longer. Now that Theos is weakened, my true powers shall come to being." He looked Sonic in the eye. "The battering I gave you in Station Square was nothing compared to my full power!" Sonic maintained eye contact, despite fearing for his life, alongside everyone else's.

Knuckles suddenly stepped forward, his fists clenched in front of him.

"In that case, candle-boy, we're gonna take you down right now!" The rest of the team adopted battle stances, ready to rush the fire-wielding deity. Pyro just laughed.

"You'll have to get through my army first." Shadow sniggered.

"What army would that be, the one attached to your wristy?" he mocked. In response, Pyro launched a fire ball at the ground between himself and the gang. The fire spread in a line between the two parties, creating a wall of flames. As the flames died down, Sonic and the team saw several figures jump out of the flames. Each one looked like Pyro, except their bodies were constantly shifting; each one a walking lava ball, complete with flame-quills on their heads. Their unearthly moan send chills through Amy, who gripped Sonic's arm for all she was worth. The demented look entered Pyro's eyes again as he pointed forward.

"KILL THEM!" At his beckoning, the legion of lava beasts leapt forward, howling and shouting like the unholy army they were. Sonic was the first to move; only rather than attacking, he turned tail. Shadow looked at him, a disgusted look evidently thinking that the Blue Blur was turning into the Yellow Chicken. Sonic shouted so the entire team could hear him over the moaning beasts.

"Split up!" Everyone instantly realised the speed demon's plan, and they ran their separate ways; back into the forest, further into the temple ruins. Knuckles even headed for the foot of Angel Mountain. The flaming legion behind them followed suit, the twenty or so beasts splitting into smaller hunting parties, each setting its sights on a different prize. Pyro, arms crossed, failed to move. The Lord of the Underworld simply smirked as his soldiers moved out.

* * *

Sonic didn't have many good plans, and he'd be the first to admit it. His mind, like his feet, worked on the basis of act first, think later, and avoid questions where possible. However, as Pyro's fiery legion had started to attack, a voice in the cerulean hedgehog's head screamed "Divide and conquer!" So he had. The legion had split up; now Sonic only had three lava beasts to worry about, rather than twenty plus. He tore through the jungle, dodging trees and shrubs with expert manoeuvring. He could hear the enemy behind him, their heavy limbs pounding on the ground. Luckily, Sonic's feet moved so quickly that he barely touched the ground, making the chasing footsteps sound even louder.

The Blue Blur glanced behind him. _Shit. They're gaining!_ As shocking as it was to be chased by something _and _losing ground (except Shadow, but hey he was the Ultimate Lifeform), Sonic had expected as much. _Can't say I've had much experience racing against demons who want to BBQ my ass!_ Sonic surged on, the whole forest a single green blur either side of him. Suddenly he saw a lone tree ahead of him, a clear path either side of it. An idea rushed though his adrenaline-fuelled mind. _Time to go for a spin_, he thought, as came level with the tree.

He reached out and grabbed the trunk.

Any scientist will tell you that the speed of a collision is calculated by adding the travelling speeds of the two parties involved. In a split second, Sonic created a collision measuring at least 200mph. Using the tree as a pivot, Sonic's momentum swung him back on himself. Sticking his feet in front of him, Sonic smashed into the fiery predators. The collision caused the three beasts to explode in shower of ash and sparks, sending Sonic flying backwards. He landed on the ground with a thump, bouncing on his backside before coming to a stop at the foot of a banana tree.

"WOOHOO!" Sonic's whoop of joy echoed around the forest. Thinking on his feet: it's what he did best. A trademark grin plastered on his face, Sonic climbed to his feet and looked back the way he had come. A dark charred path led back into the forest, grass and trees showing signs of burning. Sonic noticed his shoes were smoking slightly, although he didn't know whether that was friction burn or demon residue. Taking off back towards the Master Emerald shrine, Sonic laughed to himself. _Wait till Shads sees friction burns a la Sonic…_

* * *

Knuckles climbed the rock face with ease, slamming his spiked fists into the rock like pitons. Glancing back, he grimaced at the four fire demons scrambling up after him. _Goddam demons_.He continued to haul himself up the face of Angel Mountain. He'd done it thousands of times, usually for training purposes. But the gliding from the ledge above him was second to none…

A ball of lava whizzed past him, shocking him out of his thoughts. Knuckles clambered onto the ledge, and looked down. The demons were about fifty feet below him, and still climbing. Knuckles grinned, before stepping away from the edge. Boy, did he have a surprise for the flaming foursome.

Within seconds, the four lava beasts were climbing onto the ledge, snarling and moaning, eager to fulfil their master's wishes. They found Knuckles stood back from the edge, back pressed against the cliff face. With menacing grins that distorted through the lava, the four fiends stepped away from the edge, towards the motionless Knuckles. Purple eyes sprang open.

"Stop!" The demons, shocked by this outburst, did just that. Knuckles grinned. "Idiots." He thumped the cliff face behind him, a powerful punch by any standards. An ominous rumbling filled the air, and to the dismay of the demons, huge boulders came away from the cliff face. In the scramble to escape, all four were crushed by the slabs of rock, until nothing more than a pile of ash sat beside the rubble. Knuckles shook his head in mock disappointment. "Super Villain 101: Henchmen are dim, and are therefore expendable!" He laughed quietly as he took a running leap off the ledge, catching the wind in his dreadlocks, and glided back towards the shrine.

* * *

Rouge and Amy crouched behind the ruins of the Chaos temple. They had evaded the flaming demons that had chased them from the main shrine, and were now trying to figure out how to escape a certain fiery demise.

"Any thoughts?" asked Rouge, as she peered though a hole in the brickwork. Amy, a few feet along the wall, looked at her winged companion.

"Not a one." she said. Rouge was about to say something when a flaming figure leapt over the wall, slamming into her. She screamed as the burning limbs touched bare skin. She landed on the ground, the sudden change to momentum causing the beast to topple off her. It rolled over, climbing back onto to limbs, ready to pounce.

"Leave her alone, you walking matchstick!" The beast turned around, only to meet a PikoPiko hammer face first. The head, quickly followed by the rest of the beast, turned to a pile of ash, which scattered in the breeze as Amy helped Rouge up. "You ok?" asked Amy, noticing the red marks on Rouge's shoulders.

"Yeah" huffed Rouge. "The bastard blindsided me!" She looked past Amy, eyes wide as two more demons landed on their side of the wall. Amy turned to face them, trying her hardest to fight the fear building up in her stomach. _Be brave_, she told herself. _Be brave for Sonic_. One of the beasts leapt at her, soaring through the air with an unearthly roar. Amy flinched.

"Dark Wave!" The dark energy ripped through the lava, tearing the beats apart. The only thing that hit Amy was a small shower of harmless sparks. She looked behind her, seeing Rouge airborne, black energy still bouncing along her gloved fingers. Both girls winked their gratitude, before facing the final demon. Despite having lost both of its comrades, the demon still attacked, like a wounded lion that refuses to back down. Unfortunately, it misjudged its jump, sailing over Amy's head, into a spinning heel kick from Rouge. The change in momentum caused the beast to fall to the ground, where a lightning-fast hammer attack finished it off. Amy and Rouge grinned at each other.

"You go, girlfriend!" they squealed in union, before taking off back to the shrine, in search of the others.

* * *

With a groan of pure annoyance, Shadow obliterated the final beast, its lava body exploding into a shower of sparks. As the most powerful of the group, it made sense that Pyro had sent more of his minions after the ebony hedgehog. Not that that had mattered. Shadow had barely moved from the opening around the shrine. A combination of Chaos Control and Chaos Spears had left the fiery demons helpless against him. Now he was bored. Even more so, he was pissed off. Why couldn't Pyro go and find another world to invade? Shadow turned to face the master demon, pointing an angry finger.

"I've dispatched the monkeys. Now I want the organ grinder!" he shouted, the anger coursing through his bloodstream like a narcotic. Chaos energy demanded release, and Shadow was determined to ram a Chaos Blast or two down Pyro's throat, god or no god. Pyro just smirked.

"You don't seriously think that you can take me on alone" taunted the fire wielder, gesturing towards the loan hedgehog. Another voice took the smile off Pyro's face.

"He's not gonna be alone. He's got me." Shadow turned to see Sonic emerge from the jungle, fit as fiddle, no signs of fire damage or injury otherwise. Sonic gave his trademark thumbs up to Shadow, who had to smirk at the blue hedgehog's confidence.

"And they've got us!" Amy and Rouge entered the clearing from the temple ruins. Amy instantly took her place next to Sonic, hammer at the ready. The sight of his beloved posing like a warrior princess sent shivers down Sonic's spine. _Hubba hubba... _Rouge stood alongside Shadow, who instantly noticed the pink burn marks where the demon had grabbed her. He didn't say anything, but the Chaos energy inside demanded revenge even more. Pyro looked around.

"Oh dear" he said mockingly. "You seem to be one short. I do hope poor Knuckles didn't suffer too badly" A gust of cold air rushed through, soon followed by a descending Knuckles, much to the irritation of Pyro.

"Sorry I'm late, guys" said Knuckles, rubbing the back of his head. "Bad gliding weather." A growl from Pyro caught everyone's attention.

"You may have escaped that small offering of my powers, but believe me, there's more where they came from. A spout of fire erupted from his hands, covering the ground between the gang and himself. Hundreds of lava beasts emerged from the fire, each one moaning the same other-worldly chant. The same evil grin spread across Pyro's face. "Only a miracle will save you now."

The sound of a powerful jet engine filled the air. Sonic looked up, a huge grin on his face. "One miracle, coming up!"

* * *

**I'm impressed Pyro. That really did the trick.**

**_I thought it would._**

**Anyway, I'm back to full strength now, and really going for this Fic. Apologies for the lack of updates, followed by two in quick succession, but hey, that's life! Please read and review. No flames, but helpful criticism is appreciated. I can't please everyone, but I'll bloody well try!!**

**Until next time, Peace out y'all -Theos & _Pyro_**


	7. Strike Back

**What can I say? Sorry to those of you who have been patiently waiting for the next chapter.**

**_Where the hell have you been?_**

**Busy busy busy. Life has been absolutely chaotic the past few months, and I'm truely sorry for the lack of updates.**

**_You should be..._**

**Can we get on with it now?**

**_Fire away..._**

* * *

Chapter 7: Turning Up the Heat

With a roar from the newly installed jet engines, the X-Tornado shot overhead, Tails waving to his comrades below. Pulling on the gear stick, he swung the jet round in a circle, coming around again. Without warning, the wing-mounted machine guns burst into life, tracer bullets streaking through the air towards the lava army. The first wave, some twenty flaming warriors, were ripped apart by the bullets, magma flying in all directions as the beasts were torn apart. Within seconds, all that remained of the first line of Pyro's army were twenty piles of ash and scorch marks in the grass. Sonic fisted the air, a huge grin lighting up his face.

"Now that's what I call back-up!" Knuckles put his hand on the blue blur's shoulder.

"It ain't over yet, Sonic" said the crimson guardian, gesturing to the army stood between themselves and their fiery nemesis. "We still got loads more of Pyro's goons to get through." The cerulean hero looked at the flaming army before him. Something about their formation clicked in Sonic's head, and a wicked smirk appeared on his face. _They're in straight rows, almost a grid pattern…if we take out the centre…_

"Hey guys! I think I just got another brainwave." Shadow chuckled beside him.

"My, my, faker. Two in one afternoon. That must be a new record!" Ignoring his ebony friend's dry sense of humour, Sonic turned his head skywards, just as the X-Tornado was swinging round again.

"Yo, Tails!" The two-tailed fox looked down at his surrogate brother waving at him. He activated the planes loudspeaker system.

"What's up, Sonic?" The speed demon turned to Shadow.

"Clear a path for us" The Tornado swung round again, this time with several missiles appearing under its belly. Sonic turned to Knuckles. "Think you can make a few of those matchsticks disappear?" Knuckles grinned, flexing his arms.

"Just watch me." The guardian leapt into the air, twisted and flew down, spinning like a corkscrew into the ground. As Knuckles disappeared, the Tornado went on the attack. With a multitude of whooshes, eight missiles shot away from the plane, their exhausts leaving smoke trails in the air.

BOOM!

The missiles struck home, blowing huge holes in Pyro's formation. Tails followed up with a barrage of tracer fire, taking out a few more of the beasts. Pyro's troops attempted to avoid the gunfire, crowding together away from the craters being left by Tails' attack, despite Pyro yelling for them to get back in formation. Then Knuckles struck.

Groups of the flaming monsters suddenly starting disappearing, sucked into the ground they were standing on. Knuckles had burrowed an intricate web off tunnels beneath Pyro's army. As the monstrous soldiers grouped together to avoid the missiles, their weight became too much for the weakened ground to take. From a force of some two thousand, Pyro was soon left with no more than fifty sporadic beasts to control. To finish what had to be one of the best plans he'd ever thought of, Sonic threw in the hedgehogs.

"Hey Shad. Think you can beat me to Pyro?" The cocky grin on the face of the blue blur was enough to rile Shadow. The grin on the Ultimate Lifeform's face, however, was just as cocky.

"Last one to hit him loses fifty rings" A thumbs up was all the only response Sonic gave, as both super fast hedgehogs crouched into a sprinters stance. There was only about 500 metres between them and Pyro. _Nothing to it_, thought both hedgehogs simultaneously. Twin auras flared into life, one yellow, one blue. Chaos energy sparked off blue and black quills as the two hedgehogs charged up. With a mighty sonic boom, both hedgehogs shot off the mark.

They shot through the dilapidated army, more of which were being dispatched by the Tornado. Pyro, his attention on what remained of his army didn't see the attack coming until it was too late. Time seemed to slow down as the two heroes of Mobius shot past either side of Pyro. The fire demon tried to attack back but the built up Choas energy within his adversaries burst into life.

"CHAOS…"

"SONIC…"

Pyro's eyes widened with fear.

"Oh Chaos, NO!"

"…BLAST!"

"…BOOM!"

Two huge balls of Chaos energy enveloped Pyro, before exploding in a massive fireball. The Chaos Blast and Sonic Boom both hit home, sending Pyro flying through the air, barely breathing. His battered body smashed into the Master Emerald shrine, before falling to the ground in a crumpled heap.

Due to the speed they had been travelling at, Shadow and Sonic had completely overshot Pyro, avoiding the fireball that had erupted from their joint attack. As the smoke cleared, the two supersonic hedgehogs surveyed the results. The remainder of the fiery army had been destroyed by the blast. Amy, Rouge and Knuckles had dived to the ground, the fireball rocketing over their heads, only singeing Knuckles dreadlocks as he dropped.

As Tails brought the Tornado in to land, Sonic and Shadow ran over to help their team-mates back to their feet.

"You two are fucking insane!" yelled Knuckles, yet the broad grin on his face suggested he was anything but annoyed as Sonic yanked him back upright. The cerulean hero's grin matched that of his crimson ally.

"And you wouldn't want us any other way!" he laughed, as he helped Amy back to her feet. Just as she got up, the pink hedgehog fell back, clutching her right ankle.

"Argh! I think its twisted." She grimaced as Knuckles took her right shoe off.

"Hmmm, there's a bit of bruising. Nothing broken though." The guardian stood up again, and helped Amy up, putting her arm over his shoulder to support her. "You should be able to run it off in a bit." The look on Amy's face suggested she wanted to do anything but run anywhere.

"What about you, bat-girl?" Shadow helped Rouge up, before making a quick scan of her. Aside from a small gash in her left forearm, the jewel thief was more dirty than injured. Dust and ash had turned her usually pristine white fur a dull grey. Indeed, the entire team was covered in ash after the battle with the flame army. Tails, having landed the Tornado on a flat area close by, came running over.

"Yo Tails!" Sonic greeted his little brother with a bear hug. "That was some super sweet fly moves!" Tails beamed; there was nothing he liked more than being complimented for his flying abilities, and especially by Sonic.

"Aw, it was nothing Sonic…hey, what's wrong with Amy?" inquired the kitsune, as the object of his question hobbled next to Knuckles.

"Twisted ankle" replied Amy, grinding her teeth through the pain. Tails' eyes widened for a second.

"Wait here." With that, the fox ran back to towards the Tornado.

"Well, duh!" muttered Amy, earning a stifled giggle from Rouge. Tails returned, carrying a green suitcase. On the front was a white cross.

"I always carry a first aid case on the Tornado" stated Tails as he set the case down. Knuckles and Sonic helped Amy to the ground, as Tails took out some bandages and some painkillers. "Here, these should take the edge off" said the kitsune as he handed the pills to Amy. Then he set to work, bandaging the injured limb.

* * *

**I'm hoping this will satisfy for now?**

**_Satisfy? I just got blown to kingdom come! How is that supposed to satisfy anyone?_**

**...Does for me...**

_**[growling through clenched teeth]**_

**Til next time (which I'm hoping isn't too far away) Theos and _Pyro_**


End file.
